The Years of the Devil
by Veraison
Summary: Some nights the boy sleeps in peace. But only some nights. Series of drabbles.
1. Chapter 1

**Night time**

There are nights when the darkness comes earlier than usually. It starts slowly with sunlight turning bluer and colder, close to the colour of death's lips.

Some nights the boy takes the darkness well. He is satisfied with only one candle and doesn't pull the cover over his head when the candle is blown.

But that is only some nights.

Other nights the boy wakes up screaming bloody murder. Sometimes he dreams about being buried alive and mistakes his head-covering blanket to hard ground choking him. He screams and screams until the butler runs in and lifts the blanket. Rarely falls the boy asleep after that, more often does he stay up the rest of the night.

Then there are nights when he thinks the house is burning. He cries for help and when the butler tries to shake him to his senses, the boy struggles like his butler's hands are the flames which he dreams of. Sebastian quickly found out that it was surprisingly hard to hold the boy without hurting him. Maybe he should just break one of the boy's bones, that would surely wake him.

He doesn't do that. He doesn't even grip hard enough to leave marks.

The struggling often continues close to ten minutes and then the boy either wakes up or just starts sleeping more peacefully. Sebastian sits by his bedside until the sun comes up again.

**The morning after**

Mornings after calm nights are easy. Sebastian pulls the curtains and lets the sun in. The boy yawns and tries to wake up. His mind is clear by the time the teacup is in his hand. Nothing more than that. Just a young boy and his butler. Just a lazy, slow morning.

If a letter from the Queen arrives in mornings like that, the boy sighs and lets his butler read it for him. Then he sighs again. Because the job is more often than not dirty, frustrating, dangerous and will make him overstep his own limits. If the job is one of the worst kind, the boy might even curse.

When the night has been full of terror and screaming, the boy has dark lines under his eyes by morning. Some mornings the butler finds him sitting in his bed and being neither awake nor asleep. Sebastian pulls the curtains more slowly those mornings, to let the boy adjust to the change. To let him forget the previous night.

The boy's hand trembles when he holds the teacup. And a letter from anyone can make him look like a ghost.

And then there are mornings, when the butler lets his young master to sleep in.


	2. Chapter 2

**Dessert**

The boy likes desserts, which his butler makes for him.

But he doesn't always like the same ones.

There are days when everything with strawberries makes him cringe. And there are days when he gazes at his mousse au chocolate as if it was excrement.

The butler doesn't point out how his master's taste varies. Sebastian knows when he has to let it be.

Sometimes the boy eats his desserts in a way, which would suit better a man, who has been starving for forty years. After those days he usually ends up bathroom, puking until his legs are shaking so bad he can't stand anymore.

One time the butler made him crème brûlée. It was prepared carefully and with best ingredients. When it was served for the boy, he stated it tasted like dead rats. Sebastian wondered how the boy would know the taste of dead rats. He figured that the question was best to leave unasked. The boy insisted on having something else for dessert.

That night the young master screamed in his sleep. He dreamed of giants rats drowning him in strawberry jam.

A/N: Would you prefer the stories being of this length(short) or would you like bit longer ones? Let me know in comments.


	3. Chapter 3

**Lullaby**

The piano is played often. Sometimes by the boy. Rarely by his butler. And nightly by a ghost. When Sebastian is waiting for the night to end, he hears the piano. It plays softly and quietly. The keys are hardly pressed. And the demon sees nobody. Not even any ghosts. But he is still sure that his master's mansion is haunted.

Few times a month they hear a crying baby. When the crying stops, they will hear a woman, yelling gibberish.

There is neither a woman nor a baby in the mansion.

Sebastian is preparing his master for going to bed, when the music goes particularly loud. The butler sees how the boy flinches, as instead of beautiful music someone was dragging their nails on the window. Then the demon's master begins to hum along. He seems to know the song by heart.

**Breaking**

How hard is it to break a boy? A young, delicate boy, with eyes like infinity?

Surprisingly hard. Of course there are always those ones, who will bend, break and shatter. Some with pressure close to an entire ocean, others with butterflies on their shoulders.

And then there are the rare ones. They may bend, but they never break. They keep moving forward, until the world around them collapses and shapes to their will. They don't care how many mountains they will have to move, how many fairy tales they must transform to reality. They have a goal, a purpose. A fate, which they have chosen.

Sebastian chuckles.

**Silk**

Young master's hair reminds the butler of silk, water and wind. The master has clothes made ofsilk. It feels more like liquid than fabric.

Most of master's clothing has heavy colours. Dark blue, brown, dark green, black. Colours from adults' world. But his master is very little, so the clothes must be little too. They seem to be made for a doll.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Something really short this time...

**Bathing**

The boy likes taking a bath. He wants the water to be as warm as possible. Even if it is a hot summer day. Sebastian thinks he is preparing himself for the flames of hell.

While washing the master, the butler notices how thin the boy is. He is nothing but bones and pale skin. Little doll made of ivory.

Late at night, when the master sleeps, the butler imagines. He imagines how the boy's little bones are white and fragile after the the skin is burned away.


	5. Chapter 5

**Error**

The boy is an error. He shouldn't be alive at this point, but he still is. He should have been drowned, strangled or stabbed to death a long time ago. But no, he doesn't seem to die. There are days when the demon wonders is the boy immortal.

**Blood**

The boy is so pale that he makes the butler question if his blood is truly red. Or is it water? Because the boy is emotionless some days. And some days the water boils and the boy yells and hurts and burns. Because he can't stand being so weak. Being pale and tiny. And the butler chuckles, because the boy is nothing but a child. And will never be.

**Oil**

If the boy is water, then the butler is oil. They will never blend within each other. And the butler makes flames grow and grow, until the boy wants them down.

After bath, the water stays for a while on the boy's skin. And the boy trembles, because he is cold. And nothing can melt a frozen mind.

**A/N;** Please, leave a review and tell me what do you think. And if you have any ideas, I would love to hear them.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm writing a Sebastian/Ciel smut fic right now. If you are interested in reading it, please comment! **

**I write it solely for myself, but if people want, I can publish it.**

**Eight**

Eight on its side means infinity. Infinity that binds the butler to his master. The boy is going to die some day, but until then the butler is his. And after that, if it would be possible.

Eight is also the number of how many times the boy has broken down in a year. He wails and howls to the point he can't tell which year it is, what his name is.

**Help**

The young master can't dress himself. Nor can he draw a bath. He can't cook, some days it seems he can't even avoid being kidnapped. Ciel Phantomhive is determined to be independent, but he is far from it. He needs his butler. As cold-hearted or witty as he might be, he is still a child. A child in need.

**Rotten**

The boy is like a light-yellow apple. His skin seems to be paper thin. And his flesh is no doubt fruity, juicy and luscious. But like an apple, he is easily rotten. When the snake bites the apple, the poison slowly runs through the veins of the fruit and ruins it.

**Snow**

The snow is cold under the boy's feet. He travels barefoot.

It has been some months since he returned. Since his month-long torture finally came to an end. Since he made a contract with a devil. Yes, Ciel Phantomhive, a ten-year-old is now a Faustian. And like many ten-year-olds, when he is in trouble, he seeks for his parents. For comfort and advice. So he walks barefoot, in deep snow. He wants to talk to his parents.

He couldn't take his shoes, or the devil may have noticed. At first the snow burned his feet, but now he doesn't feel them anymore. Ciel has kept his gaze at his feet, but now he lifts his head and stares forward. The cemetery is only fifty steps away. Or a decade away. Ciel swallows and then he runs. Runs towards the cemetery as fast as he can.

He stops only a step away from his parents. They are dead, Ciel realises. And death means no coming back. Suddenly the air is too thick to breath. It sticks to his throat. Ciel tries to swallow again, but it doesn't help. He is drowning.

When Sebastian finds his master, the first thing he does is to lift the boy in his lap. The snow has turned Ciel's little feet blue. Sebastian comforts his master and does his best to warm him. The boy sniffles quietly.


	7. Chapter 7

**Memory**

The boy grows. Not very fast, but still he does. And like all children, he forgets about his childhood. When the boy turns fifteen, he can't even remember if his mother's hair was the same colour as in photographs or was it even brighter.

The boy may not remember, but the house does. Sebastian hears how the house wails at night. It is too empty for its own good.

**Silence**

For the first months, the boy and the demon are only by themselves. No one else is around. The boy isn't that talkative and Sebastian doesn't see a reason to encourage him to speak. So there lays the silence. It is thick, much like steam. And as time goes by, they get used to it.

After four months, the boy opens up. He bosses his butler around and sometimes speaks just to hear his own voice. But anything is better than silence.

**Miniature**

The boy is little. Sebastian sees that. And the boy does too. First it bothers the young master. He hates looking up to other people. Of course, after a while he finds out his size will help him. People don't accuse little boys of murder.

Thank you everyone! Especially **gurnius **for their long, magnificent comment! The smut is coming. It is going to be an oneshot, a long one. Close to 6, 000 words. Maybe even longer.


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